Watching the watchers : Communist elites, the secret police and social order in Cold War Europe / Henry Thomson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Thomson, Henry, 1984- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Secret service--Europe, Eastern--History--20th century.

Secret service.

Intelligence service--Europe, Eastern--History--20th century.

Intelligence service.

Cold War.

Communist countries--Politics and government.

Communist countries.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2024

Summary:

"Secret police are central actors in dictatorships, yet we know very little about these institutions. Exploring communist regimes in Central and Eastern Europe, Henry Thomson opens this black box for the first time. This book will appeal to anyone interested in how authoritarian regimes and their secret police forces work"-- Provided by publisher

Contents:

Cover

Half-title page

Title page

Copyright page

Dedication

Contents

List of Figures

List of Tables

Acknowledgments

Part I Introduction and Theory

1 Introduction

1.1 The Puzzle: Variation in Coercive Capacity in Communist Central and Eastern Europe

1.2 The Effect of Coercive Capacity on Social Order

1.3 Elite Cohesion and Coercive Capacity

1.4 Previous Explanations

1.5 A Multi Method Difference-in-Differences Research Design

1.6 Plan of This Book

2 A Theory of Elite Cohesion, Coercive Capacity, and Authoritarian Social Order

2.1 Authoritarian Social Order

2.2 The Desirability of Social Order

2.3 State Violence, Repression, and Social Order

2.4 Dictators, Elites, and Coercive Agents

2.5 The Violence Delegation Problem

2.6 Elite Cohesion and the Control of Coercive Agents

2.7 External Authority and Elite Cohesion

2.8 Elite Cohesion and Coercive Capacity

2.9 Coercive Capacity, Regimes of Repression, and Social Order

2.10 Conclusion

Part II Comparative Historical Analysis: Polish People's Republic and the German Democratic Republic

3 Introduction to Part II

3.1 Conclusion

4 The Polish People's Republic

4.1 Soviet Authority, Coercive Capacity, and Stalinist Terror in Poland, 1944-1953

4.2 Soviet Retreat, Elite Factionalism, Coercive Incapacity, and Social Disorder in Poland, 1953-1956

4.3 Elite Factionalism, Coercive Incapacity, and Social Disorder in Poland, 1956-1980

4.4 Martial Law, Coercive Capacity, and the Solidarity Movement in Poland, 1980-1988

4.5 Conclusion: Negotiation and Regime Change in Poland, 1989

5 The German Democratic Republic

5.1 Soviet Authority, Coercive Capacity, and Stalinist Terror in East Germany, 1945-1953

5.2 Soviet Vulnerability, Elite Factionalism, Coercive Incapacity, and Social Disorder in the GDR, 1953-1957

5.3 Elite Cohesion, Coercive Capacity, and Social Order in the GDR, 1957-1989

5.4 Conclusion: Soviet Retreat, Coercive Capacity, and Revolution in the GDR, 1989

Part III Cross-national Quantitative Analysis

6 Introduction to Part III

6.1 Stalinism, Stalinist Leaders, and Post-Stalinist Transitions

6.2 Conclusion

7 Post-Stalinist Transitions, Elite Cohesion, and Coercive Agent Tenure

7.1 Military and State Security Institutions in Socialist Central and Eastern Europe

7.2 Soviet Authority, Elite Cohesion, and Coercive Agent Tenure

7.3 Ruling Coalitions and Coercive Agents

7.4 The Secret Police Chiefs

7.5 Coercive Agent and Ruling Coalition Member Tenure

7.6 Analysis: Post-Stalinist Transitions and Coercive Agent Tenure

Explanatory Variables

Controls for Confounding Factors

Model and Results

7.7 Conclusion

8 Chekists and Secret Informants: Post-Stalinist Transitions, Elite Cohesion, and Coercive Capacity

8.1 Elite Cohesion, Post-Stalinist Transitions, and Coercive Capacity

8.2 Chekists: Secret Police Officers

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-009-41361-9

1-009-41360-0

1-009-41362-7